Magistro darbo tikslas - išsiaiškinti Eurazijos sąjungos idėjos realizavimo galimybes; tyrimo objektas - Eurazijos sąjungos idėja ir jos realizavimo galimybės; tyrimo problema – Eurazijos sąjungos idėjos įgyvendinimo realumas ir tolimesnės regioninės integracijos perspektyvos. Tyrime naudojami aprašymo ir analizės metodai, padedantys atskleisti analizuojamo objekto charakteristikas, raidą ir apsvarstyti tolimesnes realizavimo galimybes; lyginamoji analizė padeda išskirti įvairių šaltinių skirtumus ir panašumus. Analizei naudojami pirminiai ir antriniai šaltiniai. Magistro darbo struktūra atitinka darbo uždavinius ir tyrimas pradedamas nuo Eurazijos sąjungos idėjos pristatymo (daugiausia pirminių šaltinių analizė). Pristačius ir išanalizavus tyrimo objektą (Eurazijos sąjungos idėją) ir tokios idėjos vertinimus mokslininkų ir regioninių valstybių politikų pasisakymuose, susikoncentruojama į regioninės integracijos analizę, išskiriant tarpvyriausybinių derybų ir liberalaus tarpvyriausybiškumo teorijas, kaip tinkamiausias Eurazijos sąjungos idėjos įgyvendinimo analizei. Darbo įvade apsibrėžus, jog Eurazijos sąjungą kuriančios valstybės yra neoautoritarinės, trečiajame skyriuje išanalizuojama neoautoritarizmo samprata ir tokių valstybių funkcionavimo ypatumai. Siekiant kokybiškiau išanalizuoti Eurazijos sąjungos idėjos įgyvendinimo galimybes, susikoncentruojama ties regiono specifika, pristatomas Rusijos vaidmuo regione ir tarpvalstybinių santykių regione problemos bei... [toliau žr. visą tekstą] / The purpose of research – to find out the possibilities of Eurasian Union realization; the object of research – the idea of Eurasian Union and possibilities of its realization; the problem of research is the tangibility of Eurasian Union idea‘s realization and perspectives of further regional integration. The chosen analytical methods are descriptive research and analysis, which help to reveal characteristics and development of the research object and to consider possibilities of further realization; comparative analysis helps to distinguish differences and similarities of various sources. Primary and secondary sources are used in the analysis. Structure of this master thesis is based on the raised goals and research starts with presentation of the Eurasian Union idea (mostly the analysis of primary sources). After presenting the research object (Eurasian Union idea) and scholars and politicians opinions about the idea, research concentrates on the analysis of regional integration. Intergovernmentalism and liberal intergovernmentalism are determined as the most appropriate theories of analyzing realization of Eurasian Union idea. The third chapter of master thesis analyzes the concept of neoauthoritarianism and functioning of neoauthoritarian states. In order to improve quality of analyzing Eurasian Union idea’s realization possibilities, master thesis concentrates on the specific of the region; Russia’s role in the region; problems of the interstate relations in the... [to full text]

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal

Post-Soviet Azerbaijan is often portrayed as a very secular country. Thus the mobilization of mosque communities in the late 1990s and their conflictual relationship with the authorities came as a surprise. The main aim of the dissertation is to shed light on this mobilization, focusing on the Sunni Abu Bakr and the Shi’ite Juma mosque communities in Baku. On the premise that Islamic mobilization may be interpreted as a “social movement”, internal, contextual and interactional aspects of mobilization have been studied. The analysis is chiefly based on interviews conducted in Baku in 2004/2005 with Imams, worshippers, religious and secular authorities. The study finds that young people looking for new approaches to religion have been drawn to these communities, where they encounter an independent, educated, conscientious clergy and, indeed, a “new” religion. This “sovereign” Islam does not go down well with authorities who fear politicization of religion. The Soviet heritage has provided them with a view of religion as something that should not be publicly displayed and with the institutions to control religion. Another key feature whose impact on state policy towards religious organizations cannot be underestimated is the fear of imported radicalism. A look at Islamic mobilization in North Caucasus, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan reveals many similarities, yet one momentous difference is the harsher repression in these contexts, which decreases the chances of a non-radical mobilization. The thesis concludes that the role of the state in mobilization processes in non-democratic contexts is crucial but counterintuitive, as the regimes’ efforts to stop the mobilization of movements actually leads to its intensification. In Azerbaijan, official pressure brings community members closer together and strengthens their resolve, rather than putting an end to mobilization. It also puts a spotlight on these communities which lights up the way for others in search of something new.

Although Georgia has experienced dramatic increases in the number of visitors over the past decade Swedish travellers are absent in the arrival statistics. Visitors from Eastern Europeans account for the majority of the increase in arrivals. This thesis attempts to understand what is missing in order for Swedish tourists to discover Georgia as a destination. This is done by interviewing Swedish tour operators and surveying Swedish visitors to Georgia. The results are analyzed in the framework of Leiper’s theory of destination competitiveness. A SWOT analysis is also used to structure the analysis, and the thesis suggests some benchmark measures that could be used to implement a systematic effort to improve the destination. The thesis concludes that Georgia indeed has a strong attractiveness on Swedish tourists, but that the main problems are connected with low awareness and lack of convenient transportation options. It is argued that these problems can be solved through improved marketing and entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the thesis highlights the need for Georgian destination managers to make choices today in order to shape the image of the country in the future. Georgia has a challenge to strengthen the authenticity that many travellers associate with the country, but is in a position to modernize by preserving traditions. Finally, it is argued that the results from this study are generalizable to include preferences of travellers from Western Europe in general, and therefore the study points to some significant opportunities available to Georgia.

Hydropower development is a threat to many communities around the world, especially in developing countries, where the interests of private capital dominate often at the expense of exploiting the local people. This thesis presents a case study of anti-Nenskra dam activism in Chuberi and Nakra, two villages located in the Upper Svaneti region, Georgia. Through a lens of postsocialism, this analysis assesses the anti-dam activism within its systemic and historical context, arguing that the Nenskra dam is a product of Georgia’s post-Soviet neoliberalism and the Svan protests signify a rejection of this model of development.

Charles University in Prague Faculty of Social Sciences Institute of Economic Studies DISSERTATION THESIS ABSTRACT Essays on Natural Resource Richness, Economic Growth and Institutional Quality Author: Ayaz Zeynalov Supervisor: Doc. Roman Horvath, Ph.D Academic Year: 2016/2017 Abstract This dissertation consists of three empirical papers on natural resource, economic growth and institutional quality. The first paper analyzes possible publication bias and the reason for contradictory findings in the natural resource literature, the second paper examines the effect of natural resource exports on manufacturing performance in the 15 former Soviet Union countries, and the last addresses whether similarities in country income size and at the institutional level encourage increased amounts of bilateral trade between countries. An introductory chapter puts these three papers into perspective. In the first paper, I analyze 43 studies providing 605 different regression specifica- tions and found that approximately 40% report a negative and statistically significant effect, another 40% report no effect, and the remaining 20% report a positive and statistically significant effect of natural resources on economic growth. The findings show that including interaction between natural resources and institutional quality, controlling...

Ce travail de thèse questionne la place que les dispositifs numériques d'information et de communication occupent dans la reconfiguration de l'espace public (Habermas, 1991) contemporaine post-soviétique. Il étudie également l'émergence, l'inscription sociale et l'usage politique des espaces participatifs du web - tels que les blogs, les forums ou les réseaux sociaux, au sein de cette société. Aussi, nous explorons le processus de la médiation, tel qu'il s'exerce à l'extérieur de la médiatisation classique dans la sphère publique nationale post-soviétique. Après avoir appliqué les différentes méthodes d'analyse des réseaux (cartographie, entretiens semi-directifs, observation participative), nous pouvons constater qu'actuellement en Russie contemporaine nous observons l'éclatement de l'espace public unique et le retour au modèle de double espace public: officiel « dominant », constitué en grande partie des médias audio-visuels, la presse écrite nationale et des partis politiques institutionnalisés et l'espace « parallèle » constitué des « nouveaux » médias numériques (Kiriya, 2012). Ces tendances nous montrent la persistance des formes et des configurations de l'espace public dans la société malgré les changements économiques et sociaux. Dans le contexte post-soviétique, les « nouveaux » médias numérisés soutiennent à la fracture sociale et politique dans la société et épargnent l'espace public officiel des discours et des débats oppositionnels. En même temps, ces dispositifs contribuent à l'apparition des nouveaux acteurs des débats et de la production de l'information, et au maintien de la diversité des opinions. De ca fait, les dispositifs numériques de communication peuvent être insérés dans les espaces sociaux différents et d'accompagner les pratiques de libération et de domination en même temps. Notre travail montre que le déploiement des réseaux socionumériques et des médias numériques post-soviétiques participe aux évolutions plus générales de la société post-soviétique. Ils stabilisent et rendent visible la configuration des acteurs des espaces sociaux préexistants. L'étude de l'ancrage politique des réseaux socionumériques et des médias dans l'espace public officiel nous conduit à adopter une vision critique de la théorie « positiviste » des réseaux socionumériques en tant qu'outils de délibération et de débats argumentatifs. Ainsi, l'espace numérique post-soviétique est devenu une prolongation de l'espace public officiel de domination tout en assurant l'appropriation des discours étatiques propagandistes et leur pénétration dans l'espace privé. Ce travail montre que l'ancrage social (Miège, 2007) et politique de ces outils dans la société Russe est plutôt conservatif et ne contribue à la libération et démocratisation de la société. Bien au contraire – ces outils sont utilisés pour reproduire l'ordre politique dominant, diviser l'espace public etc. Les débats et les mobilisations sur le net ont faiblement contribué à l'émancipation et aux changements sociaux. Insérés dans les champs sociaux nationaux existants, ces médias numériques ont incité à la délibération et la maîtrise de la violence. En même temps, ils pouvaient être mobilisés par les acteurs dominants afin d'asseoir leur domination et leur violence. Dans le contexte post-soviétique, les technologies numériques ont contribué au déclin de la mobilisation politique d'opposition, renforçant l'isolement des acteurs politiques, exclus de l'espace public, et un contrôle social profitable aux autorités russes actuelles. L'expression « spontanée » de mouvements sociaux s'effectue selon les formes protestataires historiquement préexistantes (Bertrand Cabedoche, 2010) et notre étude du cas post-soviétique le confirme pleinement. / This PhD work questions the place of digital information and communication devices involved in the reconfiguration of the contemporary post-Soviet public sphere (Habermas, 1991). It also examines the emergence, social inclusion and the political use of web participatory spaces - such as blogs, forums and social networks, in this society. Also, we explore the process of mediation, as is carried outside the traditional media in the post-Soviet national public sphere. After applying the different analysis methods of networks (mapping, interviews, participant observation), we can conclude that in contemporary Russia we observe the return to dual model public space: Official "dominant" (consists largely of audio-visual media, papers; magazines, radio stations) and "parallel" (consists of the oppositional political parties, "new" digital media) (Kiriya, 2012). These trends confirm the persistence of forms and configurations of public space in society despite the social and economic changes. In the post-Soviet context, the "new" digital media support the social and political cleavage in. At the same time, these devices contribute to the appearance of new actors of debates and production of information, and the maintenance of the diversity of opinions. Thereby, digital communication devices can be inserted in different social spaces, accompany the liberation and domination practices at the same time. Our work shows that the deployment of digital networks and digital media accompanies the development of the post-Soviet society. They stabilize and make visible the configuration of preexisting actors in different social spaces. This study of political use of digital networks and media in the official public space lead us to adopt a critical view of the "positivist" perception of digital networks as tools of deliberation and argumentative discussions. Thus, the post-Soviet digital space has become a digital extension of the formal domination of public space while ensuring the appropriation of state propaganda speeches and their penetration into the private area. This work shows that the social use (Miège, 2007) and policy of these tools in Russian society is quite conservative and does not contribute to the liberation and democratization of society. Quite the contrary, these devices are used to reproduce the dominant political divide public space and so on. The debates and mobilizations on the Internet have slightly contributed to the emancipation and social change. Inserted into existing national social fields, these digital media has led to the deliberation and control of violence. At the same time, they could be mobilized by the dominant players in order to establish their domination and violence. In the post-Soviet context, digital technologies have contributed to the decline of the political opposition mobilization, reinforcing the isolation of political actors, excluded from the public space, and profitable social control for current Russian authorities. The "spontaneous" social movement is performed according to the historically pre-existing forms protesters (Cabedoche Bertrand, 2010) and our study of post-Soviet case fully confirms it.

Post-Soviet nostalgia, generally understood as a sentimental longing forthe Soviet past, has penetrated deep into many branches of Russian popular culture in the post-1989 period. The present study investigates how the Soviet past has been mediated in the period between 1991 and 2012 as one element of a prominent structure of feeling in present-day Russian culture. The Soviet past is represented through different mediating arenas – cultural domains and communicative platforms in which meanings are created and circulated. The mediating arenas examined in this study include television, the Internet, fashion, restaurants, museums and theatre. The study of these arenas has identified common ingredients which are elements of a structure of feeling of the period in question. At the same time, the research shows that the representations of the past vary with the nature of the medium and the genre. The analysis of mediations of the Soviet past in Russian contemporary culture reveals that there has been a change in the representations of the Soviet past during the past twenty years, which roughly correspond to the two decades marked by the presidencies of Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s and of Vladimir Putin in the 2000s (including Dmitrii Medvedev's term, 2008–2012). The critical and reflective component that was present in representations of the Soviet past in the 1990s has slowly faded away, making room first for more commercial and then for political exploitations of the past. Building on Svetlana Boym's conceptual framework of reflective and restorative nostalgia, the present study provides an illustration of how reflective nostalgia is being gradually supplanted by restorative nostalgia. Academic research has provided many definitions of nostalgia, from strictly medical explanations to more psychological and socio-cultural perspectives. The present study offers examples of how nostalgia functions as a label in ascribing political and cultural identities to oneself and to others, creating confusion about the term and about what and who can rightly be called nostalgic.

This thesis examines the recent emergence of corporeal protest art in Russia. Through analyses of cultural, social, and economic shifts in the post-Soviet Era, I observe how this corporeal turn reflects a significant cultural transition away from the literary text, which has traditionally held a role of major importance in Russian culture. Detailed analysis of the contemporary performances of Pussy Riot and Petr Pavlensky are conducted in order to elucidate the social and political causes and implications of such a shift. Manifestation of oppositional discourse on the site of the human body is understood theoretically through Giorgio Agamben’s biopolitics, Mikhail Bakhtin’s grotesque body, and Inke Arns’ and Sylvia Sasse’s theory of subversive affirmation. Interestingly, this artistic divergence has coincided with the rise of relative economic and social wellbeing in Russia – conditions that tend to foster the development of a burgeoning public sphere, now standing at odds with an increase in political repression. Oppositionists and protest artists are, therefore, exploring new and unconventional ways of expressing dissent. My study contextualizes these new methods of expression within the larger tradition of the cultural expression of political will, examining the ways in which these works are readable through Russian cultural norms and to whom they speak. / Graduate

The objective of this thesis is to explain how Dmitrii Shostakovich used Yevgeny Yevtushenko's poetry to create the Thirteenth Symphony. This collaboration between two arts, poetry and music, reflects more than just separate ideas. The five movements of the symphony bring to public conscience the political opinions of Shostakovich regarding life in the Soviet Union.